Mark Ruffalo explains why The Avengers has become an allegory for modern America. World War Z could become a franchise. Alfonso Cuaron's stranded astronauts epic Gravity will show us a very different view of Sandra Bullock and George Clooney.

Spoilers from here on out!

Top image from Man of Steel.

Man of Steel

Here's the latest entry for the crazy rumors department: Zack Snyder's Superman movie will supposedly feature at least a cameo from his arch-nemesis Lex Luthor. What's more, the part will be played by Bradley Cooper, who became available to play the part when Paradise Lost was put on hiatus. This seems like a very shaky rumor - particularly the bit about Cooper being cast only after Paradise Lost fell through, as that means Snyder would have had to cast a major villainous part very quickly right in the middle of filming. That, uh, seems a bit unlikely, to say the least. As such, I'd take this with a pretty generous grain of salt. [Cosmic Book News]

The Avengers

As far as new Hulk actor Mark Ruffalo is concerned, this movie is an allegory for the current state of America:

"You have all these disparate egos, superheroes in this and that, and they refuse to give up some of their positions in order to make a more perfect union and to join the team. That's really what the whole movie is about: subjugating your own best interest momentarily to further that of the whole. I didn't know it a year ago that it was going to speak to so many of the issues we're having here in the United States and throughout the world, the same kind of theme. These movies reach a lot of people, they're our modern mythology. I think a lot of the beliefs I have and cherish were fostered by the decency of our superheroes, and what they were about and what they were fighting for."

Gravity

As part of his bid to make this movie about stranded astronauts as realistic as possible, director Alfonso Cuaron decided star Sandra Bullock would wear no makeup in her role as the destroyed space shuttle's medical engineer, Dr. Ryan Stone. Bullock herself explains:

God help us all when my face comes rushing at you with no makeup on. I'm going to apologize now, but Alfonso, in a brilliant move, said, ‘No makeup.'

It's not clear whether that extends to her sole costar George Clooney, but it seems decently likely to be the case. [USA Today]

World War Z

Both Paramount Pictures and director Marc Forster reportedly hope to turn this movie into the first of a trilogy, with Brad Pitt presumably on board as the star and connective tissue for all three films. [The Los Angeles Times]

Underworld: Awakening

Co-directors Mars Marlind and Bjorn Stein discuss the decision to make humans aware of the vampires and lycans, and how this film is something different from the previous three movies:

Mans Marlind: We're trying to keep it Underworld in tone. Once we started working on it, it was like you didn't want to stray too far from all of that because then it will just become another movie. You want to have the Underworld feel. Yes, the story picks up 12 years [after Evolution], but that doesn't necessarily mean it has to be this futuristic thing, it's just 12 years later and now you have the humans involved in this comic book world. We were always pushing ourselves to not do something you've seen before in the previous films. We have daylight scenes, which is difficult because there haven't really been any before. How do we treat daylight? Stuff like that is fun to do.

Bjorn Stein: One of the things we felt we could change was the locations and change some other elements, but the tone has to be the same. The tone of Underworld is that it takes itself kind of seriously. You've got betrayal and other themes...Selene is being hunted. The first script we read had a lot of stuff we liked but the tone was totally off. There was a bit of humor in it and Underworld shouldn't have that. The seriousness of it works because there's so much cool shit in it like the gizmos, the weaponry and the fight sequences. All of that makes it impressive.

Here's a casting call for episode fifteen, which is being directed and co-written by Josh Wyman, one of the show's executive producers:

[MAN] 45. One of Fringe's best bad guys. Terrifying character, who is doing unfathomable things to serve his own bent logic. Character will wear prosthetic makeup on face and hands. Guest lead. Please submit all races and ethnicities.

Person of Interest

Here's a brief description for episode twelve, "Legacy", which airs January 19 and is the second episode of the second half of the season:

DETECTIVE CARTER COMES FACE-TO-FACE WITH REESE AND HAS TO DECIDE ONCE AND FOR ALL WHICH SIDE SHE'S ON – When Carter finally comes face-to-face with Reese, he urges her to join forces to help with their latest POI, a scrappy young woman from the wrong side of the tracks who turned her life around and became a lawyer.

Once Upon a Time

Here's a promo for the show's return this Sunday with the Jane Espenson-written episode "Desperate Souls." [KSiteTV]

Here's a bunch of photos as well as the synopsis for the next episode after "Desperate Souls" and the ninth overall, "True North", which features a guest appearance from Buffy the Vampire Slayer alum Emma Caulfield. [multipleverses.com]

EMMA TRIES TO HELP TWO HOMELESS CHILDREN FIND THEIR FATHER BEFORE THEY'RE SEPARATED AND PUT IN FOSTER CARE, AND THE EVIL QUEEN COERCES HANSEL AND GRETEL INTO STEALING AN IMPORTANT ARTIFACT FROM A BLIND WITCH, ON ABC'S "ONCE UPON A TIME" – Feeling their pain from having lived through the same experience, Emma desperately tries to help two homeless children find their birth father before they're separated and put into the foster care system. Meanwhile, back in the fairytale world that was, the Evil Queen coerces Hansel and Gretel into stealing an important artifact from a blind witch (Emma Caulfield, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer").

And here's a ton of promo photos and the official description for episode ten, "7:15 AM", which airs January 22. [multipleverses.com]

MARY MARGARET AND DAVID CONTINUE TO GRAPPLE WITH THEIR UNREQUITED LOVE, AND SNOW WHITE TRIES TO EASE HER BREAKING HEART AS PRINCE CHARMING'S WEDDING TO KING MIDAS'S DAUGHTER APPROACHES, ON ABC'S "ONCE UPON A TIME" – Mary Margaret and David continue to grapple with their unrequited love, and Emma and Regina grow suspicious over a mysterious new stranger in town. Meanwhile, in the fairytale land that was, Snow White yearns to ease her breaking heart as Prince Charming's wedding to King Midas's daughter approaches.

Alcatraz

Here's a promo for the upcoming two-hour premiere of J.J. Abrams' latest mythology mystery show, which kicks off January 16. These are from the first two episodes, "Pilot" and "Ernest Cobb."

And here's an official description for the two-part premiere:

"Detective Rebecca Madsen" (Sarah Jones) and Alcatraz historian "Doctor Diego Soto" (Jorge Garcia) team up with a secret agency that is dedicated to finding and catching inmates from the infamous prison who went missing 50 years ago and are reappearing today. The special task force includes Sam Neill as "Emerson Hauser" and Parminder Nagra as "Doctor Lucy Banerjee." Then, when a sniper begins targeting young victims, the team is forced to retrace the steps of the past in order to solve this modern day mystery on the special two-hour series premiere.